Leave it to the folks in South Louisiana to push the envelope of culinary creativity.
On my recent escapade to the hot, sticky land we call South Louisiana, I happened upon a new boudin "treatment" that I just have to share.
As many of you who love cajun food know, the "boudin ball" has become a Baton Rouge/New Orleans staple. Plain and simple, a boudin ball is a ball of rice and meat (boudin sausage filling), rolled into the size of a traditional hushpuppy, and deep fried. Most credit the birth of the commercial boudin ball to Tony's Seafood Market, on Plank Road in Baton Rouge. Today, you can find them in hundreds of markets, restaurants and gas stations.
What I learned over the weekend was that you didn't need to shape and fry and boudin ball to enjoy fried boudin.
My friends at Bellue's, a cajun company that primarily makes ready to prepare cajun foods in Baton Rouge, has launched their own fried boudin treat...but not a ball.It's the entire link.
That's right, you remove the casing, and deep fry the entire sausage link. What you get is a hot and crispy link, slightly crunchy on the outside and moist and hot in the middle. It's genius.
As I quizzed the kitchen staff at Bellue's, they confessed there wasn't much to the magic... they simply removed the casing and fried at room temp. Having fried many a boudin ball in my day, I found this hard to believe (these things like to cook apart)... but they showed me first hand their process... and sure enough, it worked.
As I haven't been in Louisiana on a regular basis for a while, I'm not sure if this method has spread throughout cajun country... but I am guessing it may very well have.
It just goes to show you, there is always something new happening with food down south. This just happens to be my cup of tea.
To read about the best boudin in the world, visit my favorite site on the subject, and what makes their boudin the best.....
(by the way, you can order delicious boudin and jalapeno cheese bread from Bourque's, but the best boudin on this planet is made at Jerry Lee's Kwik Stop)
CAJUN ALERT
If you happen to be driving through the Scott, Louisiana area anytime soon, I would highly recommend you stop your damn car, get out, and eat one of these.
That's right, it's the greatest Pork Chop Sandwich on the planet. A perfect chop.... marinated, seasoned and resting quietly between two pieces of innocent white bread. This is just about as good as it gets.
You can find 'em at Don's Specialty Meats... tell 'em Andre sent ya.
